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Mrs. Joanne Chafe, director of the National Office of
Religious Education for the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops
led “Putting Out Into the Deep!” participants in a dynamic,
meaningful, and challenging reflection on the call to evangelize. Building on
the insight that “the Church exists to evangelize,” Joanne used vital
perspectives from Paul VI’s letter “Evangelii Nuntiandi,” as
well as orientations and approaches outlined in The General Directory for
Catechesis, to help participants reflect deeply on this call to bring
good news to all.
Joanne emphasized that the orientation of evangelization
in the catholic church is not one that seeks to “make everyone the
same.” Rather, it is rooted in a desire to share the person of Jesus
Christ who announced himself as good news for all. Evangelization needs to be
grounded in deep respect for the person, aware of and sensitive to the
“soil” of the other, and wise and discerning about when to speak and
when to be silent.
Three stages of evangelization were highlighted: The
missionary stage; the catechetical stage; the pastoral stage. Joanne emphasized
the importance of engaging with people at the appropriate stage with the
appropriate orientations and means. This points to the need in the church for
well formed catechists who are able to lead these processes, and for the entire
Christian community, pastoral leaders and all the baptised together, to be well
formed for this important call. |
Mrs. Joanne Chafe gave a dynamic, challenging and
informative presentation 
Participants engage in meaningful dialogue with Joanne
Chafe, presenter |
